Creamy, punchy and tangy Sun Dried Tomato & Cannellini Bean Salad – make in 15 minutes or less with minimal prep! Serve as a simple side, as a snack or starter with bread or crackers or enjoy as a light lunch or dinner. Gluten Free + Vegetarian + Vegan Option
May I please introduce to you the most fancy-ass salad you have ever seen which just so happens to also be the easiest salad you can ever make? Okay maybe it’s not actually the ~fanciest~. I’ll admit that my bar for what qualifies as fancy miiiight be a bit low. What can I say? I’m a simple girl with simple tastes.
HOWEVER I’ll stand by the statement that this is probably the easiest salad you can make and I’ll even go so far as to say it’s one of my favourites. Picture me as Julie Andrews singing about all of my favourite things….except all my favourite things are food and they’re mixed together in this Sun Dried Tomato Cannellini Bean Salad.
Sun Dried Tomato Cannellini Bean Salad
Altogether this salad take about 10 minutes to throw together. It all comes down to the prep work which is pretty minimal here. It’s really just a matter of chopping up a few ingredients and draining/rinsing your beans.
As a side note – speaking of beans save your aquafaba! Aquafaba (literally meaning bean water) – the weird, starchy water found in cans of beans. It makes for a really fantastic egg substitute that can be used in a number of different ways. You can make gluten free vegan bread, brownies, chocolate mousse and even meringue!
Back to the salad…
A note about the cheese: you can absolutely make this salad without or without the feta. I’ve personally been on a bit of a feta kick lately so I went ahead and tossed some in there. That being said this salad really does have enough flavour going on already that you can leave it out without missing any crucial flavours. Alternatively you can also opt to use a dairy free feta if you’d like! Store bought is fine if you’ve got a favourite. I’m personally a huge fan of this homemade feta from The First Mess. Whenever I’m in need a dairy free, plant based feta I make this and it really hits the spot.
There’s nothing too tricky here – just throw everything in a bowl and toss to combine. If you really want to enhance the flavour then I recommend covering and chilling this prepped salad in the fridge for at least 30 minutes just to let the flavours all get to know each other.
It’s perfect if you need a quick and easy make-ahead-salad to bring along to potlucks and BBQ’s!
Hope you enjoy!
Sun Dried Tomato Cannellini Bean Salad
Creamy, punchy and tangy Sun Dried Tomato & Cannellini Bean Salad - make in 15 minutes or less with minimal prep! Serve as a simple side, as a snack or starter with bread or crackers or enjoy as a light lunch or dinner. Gluten Free + Vegetarian + Vegan Option
Ingredients
- 2 cans | 15 ounces cannellini bean, drained & rinsed
- 1/2 cup red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon minced or grated garlic
- 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil
- 1/4 cup pinenuts
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, loosely packed and slices
- 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt + more to taste
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon oil from jar of sun dried tomatoes
- 2 oz feta, crumbled (optional) use vegan feta if you like
Instructions
- Combine everything to a large salad or mixing bowl and toss well to combine. Toss for at least a minute or two to make sure that everything is mixed well. Taste and season with additional salt, pepper and vinegar as needed.
- Serve as is, over a bed of greens, in wraps, on bread/crackers.
Notes
For best flavour cover and let this salad marinate in the fridge for about 30 minutes to soak in all the flavours.Â
Sarah says
Made half of the recipe yesterday, had it for lunch today and will again tomorrow! I was so excited to have it today, and it was such a tasty meal that helped keep me going all afternoon.
Sarah Nevins says
That makes me so happy to hear! Thanks so much for coming back to let me know what you thought – I’m so glad you enjoyed this 🙂
Christine says
Could you use dried sun dried tomatoes? (Sold in a bag)
Sarah Nevins says
That’s totally fine!
Victoria says
I really wanted a cold salad from a hot day, had to improvise quite a bit (so sorry) will try again though because I felt like it was missing something and that could very well be my subs! Northern beans and a can of chickpeas 😅 and didn’t have fresh basil so used dried.
Sarah Nevins says
No worries! Sometimes we just have to make due with what we’ve got! If you do plan on trying it again I do think fresh herbs would make a big difference. If you still feel like it’s missing something I recommend add a bit more lemon juice and maybe salt and pepper as well. When a recipe isn’t popping enough for my taste I just increase one of those and that usually does that trick!
KR says
Lemon juice?
Sarah Nevins says
My mistake! I meant vinegar – when things don’t quite pop yet I often add a bit more acid (which for me is usually in the form or lemon juice) and that helps to brighten things up
Cathy says
Amazing salad! My husband asked me to make it again 2 days later.
Sarah Nevins says
Yay! So happy to hear that – thanks so much for taking the time to come back and let me know what you guys thought!
Nikki says
How long will this hold up in the fridge if I prepped this for lunches?
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Nikki! This should last you about 4-5 days at least!
Debbie Murphy says
This was delicious! I cut the recipe in half because there were just two us. Next time I’ll make the full recipe. My husband loved and said he could eat just that for dinner! Thank you 🙂
Sarah Nevins says
Thanks Debbie! So glad to hear you both enjoyed it! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a comment!
Laura Kelly says
Really really tasty. Best bean salad ever!. I used dill because I was out of basil and it was delicious. This is one for my personal recipe book!
Sarah Nevins says
Thanks Laura! Dill sounds like it would be lovely in this – going to have to try that one next! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a comment!
Sandy says
I just put it together and already I know it will be tasty. My test bite was amazing!!! Can’t wait until it comingles even more.
Sarah Nevins says
Yay! Thanks Sandy! Enjoy 🙂
Brenda says
This is the easiest and most flavorful bean salad I’ve ever had! I think the use of the sun-dried tomato oil is brilliant – Thanks!
Sarah Nevins says
So glad you liked it! Thanks so much for coming back to let me know what you thought!
Michele says
Easy to make and delicious!
Sarah says
Thanks Michele! Glad you liked it!